Replication of a tri-level model of anxiety and depression in a sample of young adults
Year: 2019
Type: preprint
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: The wide array of symptoms of unipolar depressive and anxiety disorders has raised questions about the relationship between these disorders, and factor analysis provides one approach to examining these relationships. In this paper, we replicate the tri-level model of symptoms of anxiety and depression first proposed by Prenoveau et al. (2010) in a sample of young adults selected to vary in their risk for psychopathology. In the tri-level model, symptom-specific items load on three factors arranged in a bifactor structure: a narrow (or disorder-specific) factor, an intermediate (or category-specific) factor, and a general distress factor. The tri-level model fit well in this sample. Furthermore, it fit significantly better than models that eliminated one of the three levels, suggesting that each level of the tri-level model contributes significantly to model fit. This conceptual replication once again supports the tri-level model. Implications for research and treatment are discussed.
Institution: Temple University
Language: English
Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W3161761660